REASONS TO VISIT 10 SICILY

If you want to feed every one of your senses, there’s nowhere on earth quite like Sicily. You’ll experience a cultural, gastronomical and historical high so addictive it should come with a health warning. The tricky part is knowing where to start, says Sicily addict Melanie O’Shea

1 EXPLORE MOUNT ETNA

Start with an adrenaline thrill and, setting off from Taormina, spend a day exploring Mount Etna, the second-most active volcano in the world. Take a gondola and 4WD sand bus from Rifugio Sapienza (funiviaetna.com, €63) up into an alien environment where dunes of black sand become giant peaks surrounding smoking craters. Book a guided tour, hold a hot lava stone and feel the power of what’s beneath your feet. Look up to the main crater with its vapour halo and down to an extraordinary view over the island.

2 TRY THE STREET FOOD

Every town of any size, from Palermo to Syracuse, has its own variation on street food, and you have to try it. Start with arancine – fried balls of rice stuffed with various fillings. Pane con panelle is a divine sandwich of chickpea fritters; sfincione is a Sicilian pizza with a thick base topped with tomato, rich caciocavallo cheese and more. If you’re more adventurous try babbaluc – small snails, best sucked direct from the shell, served with a garlicky sauce; and Palermo speciality pani ca’ meusa – spleen burger… Try it!